Dr. Rachel Fernandez has been announced as UBC’s next Associate Vice-President, Research & Innovation, effective March 15, 2021.
Dr. Fernandez will be joining Vice-President, Research & Innovation Dr. Gail Murphy and Associate Vice-Presidents, Research & Innovation Dr. Matthew Evenden and Dr. Phil Barker, who is also appointed as Vice-Principal, Research & Innovation at UBC Okanagan. These senior leaders share the leadership of the diverse range of portfolio units and initiatives that support UBC’s research and innovation activities. She will be taking over from Dr. Helen Burt in this role following her retirement in February next year.
Dr. Fernandez is a professor in UBC’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology whose research focuses on bacterial surfaces, vaccines and the bacterium causing pertussis (whooping cough). She joined UBC in 1996 and has contributed to the university’s research and teaching missions in many ways, including serving two terms as Associate Dean, Postdoctoral Fellows Office in the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies from March 2014 to May 2019.
Read the full announcement at https://research.ubc.ca/announcing-prof-rachel-fernandez-associate-vice-president-research-and-innovation